OCONUS: Outsiders Paid, Hawaiians Penalized

What Is OCONUS?

  • In U.S. Department of Defense regulations, OCONUS means Outside the Continental United States.

  • Hawaiʻi is classified as OCONUS.

  • This means military personnel stationed in Hawaiʻi are administratively treated the same as those stationed in foreign countries like Japan, Germany, or Korea.

Fact: DoD travel regulations (Joint Travel Regulations, updated annually) specifically define Hawaiʻi as an OCONUS location.

What This Means for Service Members

  • Mainland troops sent to Hawaiʻi receive overseas pay and benefits:

    • COLA (Cost of Living Allowance) — to offset the “high cost” of serving overseas.

    • Per diem and travel benefits structured as if they were going abroad including free round trip tickets to their home of record.

  • Native Hawaiians stationed at home in Hawaiʻi are told they live OCONUS — essentially, “overseas in their own homeland.”

  • Native Hawaiians stationed in CONUS (California, Texas, Virginia, etc.) do not receive any benefits, no round trip tickets home and back even though:

    • They are just as far from their ʻohana.

    • They use the same U.S. currency.

    • They live under the same government, language, and flag.

The Double Standard

  1. Outsiders gain: Mainland troops are paid more to be in Hawaiʻi.

  2. Hawaiians lose again: Hawaiians get no recognition when they serve on the mainland, even though their separation and sacrifice are the same.

  3. Message sent: Hawaiʻi is not fully American — it is “overseas.”

Fact: OCONUS COLA in Hawaiʻi averages between $250–$1,000/month per service member, depending on rank, dependents, and location. None of that goes to Hawaiians posted to CONUS, despite identical hardships in distance from home.

Why It’s Discriminatory

  • It implies Hawaiʻi is somehow foreign or alien, requiring extra pay for outsiders to endure.

  • It erases Hawaiian identity: Hawaiians are labeled foreigners in their own homeland.

  • It repeats the same colonial logic seen since the overthrow: Hawaiians are always “the other,” never equal.

  • It sends a painful message to young Hawaiian patriots: if you serve, you will still be treated differently.

The Human Impact

  • Hawaiians who choose to serve the nation watch outsiders receive benefits for being in Hawaiʻi, while they themselves are denied the same when posted elsewhere.

  • This isn’t just financial — it cuts to dignity, belonging, and fairness.

  • It discourages service and deepens mistrust between Native Hawaiians and the federal government.

Why KS Matters

  • Pauahi’s will created Kamehameha Schools to correct systemic inequities — in education, opportunity, and dignity.

  • OCONUS policy is a modern example of those inequities.

  • KS builds the strength, identity, and pride of Hawaiian youth, ensuring they know their worth even when federal policy denies it.

  • Protecting KS means preparing future generations to fight such injustices with knowledge, culture, and unity.

✅ Summary:
The OCONUS policy is not just a bureaucratic rule. It is a living example of systemic discrimination:

  • Outsiders are rewarded.

  • Hawaiians are penalized.

  • Hawaiʻi is treated as “foreign.”

Until that changes, Why KS Matters — as a defender of Hawaiian dignity and remedy for historic and ongoing discrimination.